A confidant of the recently departed Boeing whistleblower has cast doubt on the official ruling that his death was a suicide, injecting yet more mystery into the circumstances surrounding his shocking demise.
John Barnett, the 62-year-old former Boeing employee who bravely came forward with allegations of the company’s complicity in producing faulty aircraft, was discovered deceased in his truck on Saturday, accompanied by a note suggesting he took his own life. However, according to a “close family friend” identified only as Jennifer in an interview with ABC News 4, the pieces of the puzzle don’t quite fit, as reported by Newsweek.
“I ain’t scared,” Barnett allegedly confided in her, before chillingly adding, “but if anything happens to me it’s not suicide.”
“I know he did not commit suicide there’s no way. He loved life too much, he loved his family too much, he loved his brothers too much to put them through what they’re going through right now,” Jennifer asserted to the ABC affiliate. “I think somebody didn’t like what he had to say and wanted to shut him up and didn’t want it to come back on anyone so that’s why they made it look like a suicide.”
Reports from the Charleston, South Carolina police department and the local coroner determined Barnett’s cause of death as a “self-inflicted” gunshot wound to the head, with a “silver handgun” found nearby. Additionally, a “white piece of paper that closely resembled a note” was discovered at the scene.
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Barnett initially came forward in 2019, revealing to the New York Times that Boeing’s production of Airbus 737 planes was riddled with defects from start to finish.
“I haven’t seen a plane out of Charleston yet that I’d put my name on saying it’s safe and airworthy,” he boldly stated.
Robert Turkewitz and Brian Knowles, legal representatives for Barnett during his whistleblower case, concurred that there was “no indication” he had ever contemplated suicide.
“John was in the midst of a deposition in his whistleblower retaliation case, which finally was nearing the end. He was in very good spirits and really looking forward to putting this phase of his life behind him and moving on. We didn’t see any indication he would take his own life. No one can believe it,” they declared in a statement to Newsweek.
“We are all devastated. We need more information about what happened to John. The Charleston police need to investigate this fully and accurately and tell the public what they find out. No detail can be left unturned.”
In a brief statement, Boeing expressed sorrow over Barnett’s passing: “We are saddened by Mr. Barnett’s passing, and our thoughts are with his family and friends.”
The demise of Barnett has assumed heightened significance in the wake of two fatal crashes involving Boeing 737 planes in 2018 and 2019. Just in January, an Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 experienced a harrowing incident when one of its doors blew off, necessitating an emergency landing.